Daddy-Long-Legs (1919) User Reviews

Awesome!

[aidinglemons · 8/10 · 21 October 2006]

This movie made me happy and not a lot of movies do that nowadays. Even though the mood of the movie changed halfway through, I think it helped differentiate between the 12 year old and the adult. I highly recommend this movie to everyone!

The first time I saw this movie was late at night. My dad was flipping through channels and came across this movie and said that I would love it. Not just because it has Mary Pickford in it. So I was allowed to stay up until midnight on a school night, and back then it was a big deal! That suddenly became my dad's and my thing, to stay up late and watch old movies. I will always love this movie for itself and now it's sentimental value.

Give the movie a chance--it's one of the better Silents

[planktonrules · 8/10 · 7 August 2006]

A few years back, I started to watch this film and stopped. What bothered me was that Mary Pickford near the beginning of the film playing a 12 year-old and that just seemed so silly I switched it off! However, after recently having forced myself to actually watch it all, it turned out to me amazingly good. Now this isn't to say this is a perfect film--the whole 12 year-old aspect is pretty tough to believe AND the time-line of the film is a real mess (if you pay attention, it seems that Mary goes to college and falls in love at age 12!)--they really needed to explain that a lot of time lapses between the opening scene of 12 year-old Mary and the closing scenes. However, if you ignore this, the rest of the film is very worth seeing.

The first part of the film is mostly light comedy with Mary playing a plucky trouble-maker with a heart of gold at the orphanage. Some of the stuff she gets into is pretty funny and she is about the most unwanted orphan in the film. However, about halfway through the movie, it abruptly changes to a romance. Mary is sent to college by an anonymous benefactor who does not want to be known to her, and so she labels him "Daddy Long Legs" and sends update letters to him telling him her progress--never knowing exactly who it is.

Both parts of the film work very well, but some might be bothered by it being almost like two totally different films--since the tone is so different in each. However, both elements DO work and work well. While this isn't my favorite Pickford film (I liked SUDS better and I still have a lot more of her films to see), this is among the better silent films I've seen (and I've seen a lot). A good story, excellent acting and a general likability of Pickford's character make this a good example of the genre.

Mary Pickford Makes it Work

[wes-connors · 8/10 · 15 March 2008]

Mary Pickford (as Jerusha "Judy" Abbott) is found, as a baby, in a garbage dump. Orphaned, she is brought to the "John Grier Home", where young boys and girls are treated more like convicts than children. By the time she is 12, little Mary is leading the orphans in a strike against eating prunes. Some years later, Ms. Pickford is the beneficiary of a lucky, life-changing event: one of the orphanage's new trustees wants to sponsor an orphan's higher education; and Pickford is chosen. At college, Pickford is a fetching young woman, which sends Cupid's arrows flying. Love-struck Princeton man Marshall Neilan (as Jimmie Mc Bride) and "older man" (as Jarvis Pendleton) vie for Pickford's hand in marriage. Pickford becomes a writer; her first effort fails, but she instinctively follows the advice "write what you know" in creating a successful tome about orphans. Finally, Pickford must choose her man, and payback her "mysterious benefactor".

Some of "Daddy-Long-Legs" doesn't ring true; vignettes are cute, in isolation, but add little to the overall film; it's obvious, for example, that the children experience some childhood fun, which is said to be completely absent. And, the cruelty of the "John Grier Home" is hardly comparable to a prison! You may also wonder why a fully clothed boy is considered "naked", how a baby might have digested a mouth organ, how that girl got in and out of the well, and other stuff. The film is not at all unpredictable.

However, Mary Pickford is outstanding. She very believably plays "Judy" - growing from a precocious 12-year-old girl to young career woman. As the film progresses, Pickford seems to add layers upon her character. For example, in some later scene, beginning at a society party where Pickford admires some ancestral portraits; watch, as the party progresses, both Pickford's past, and future, register on her face. Pickford constructs her character extremely well.

Director Marshall Neilan (who also appears, as Jimmie Mc Bride) was an important Pickford collaborator; and the supporting cast is delightful. Wesley Barry is wonderful as Pickford's early orphan pal; he manages to steal scenes from Mary Pickford - 11-year-old Barry play "drunk" better than Pickford! Carrie Clark Ward is delightful as love-weary "Mrs. Semple", and Fay Lemport (as Angelina Wyckoff) shows how pampered, selfish little girls grow up. "Daddy-Long-Legs" was filmed again and again, but this is the definitive version, thanks, mainly, to Mary.

******** Daddy-Long-Legs (5/11/19) Marshall Neilan ~ Mary Pickford, Mahlon Hamilton, Wesley Barry

Wonderful Performance By Mary Pickford

[Snow Leopard · 16 August 2001]

A wonderful and multi-faceted performance by Mary Pickford turns a pleasant but somewhat routine story into a fine film that is very enjoyable to watch. The story gives her a chance to use a lot of different talents, and whenever she is on-screen, which is most of the time, there is something worth seeing.

Pickford is equally charming (it seems impossible to write about a Pickford film without using that word) and equally believable as a young orphan and as a college girl. And she is equally good at creating laughs, expressing feelings, and evoking sympathy - often all at the same time, especially in the orphanage scenes, which have some of this film's best material. There is some excellent comedy that keeps the story from becoming overly cute or sentimental, and she makes the most of all of it.

They put some real work into the title cards for this one, filling them with some good art work and also using them at times for some well-chosen commentary. A couple of the other cast members are pretty good, too, although it is definitely Pickford that makes this so worthwhile.

This is an engaging little gem from the silent era, and a great example of what it was that made "America's Sweetheart" so popular.

Nobody does orphan girl with a heart of gold like Mary Pickford

[jacobs-greenwood · 7/10 · 18 December 2016]

Mary Pickford plays an orphan girl. So what's new in this drama? Well, of course she's the one that leads and/or cares for the other children in the orphanage which is run by a tyrant (Milla Davenport) while its unawares board members eat high on the hog with the public money.

So what's new in this Mary Pickford drama? Well, there's a rich girl (Fay Lemport) who's raised in luxury with all the comforts of home that provides a stark contrast to Pickford's orphan.

So what's new in this Pickford drama? It's not so much that anything is new in this one (in fact, actually, this was probably one of the first of this type that was later copied - e.g. in Sparrows (1926), among others - ad nauseam to give the public what it wanted from her throughout her career) as much as it is the quality of its execution and the mysterious benefactor angle.

Jerusha Abbott (Pickford), so named by a conveniently seen gravestone and a random page turned in the phonebook, grows up to be the "protector of the small" other orphans in the facility. Her care for the others is recognized by one of the wiser trustees (Percy Haswell) who then selects Jerusha as the recipient of a wealthy benefactor's charity - he offers to pay for her college education. The benefactor chooses to remain anonymous, but insists on written accounts from "Judy" about her experiences. Without knowing his name, she dubs him "Daddy Long Legs" because of an image she believes she saw of him though a translucent window. Living at a better place now, she meets, and is then courted by, a "goofy" young lad named Jimmie McBride (Marshall Neilan, this film's director!). She also spends time with her roommate's Uncle (Mahlon Hamilton), an older gentleman whom she doesn't know is also her benefactor. As his interest in her turns to love, she doesn't take him seriously enough to allow their relationship to become more than just friends.

Eventually, her benefactor reveals who he is and, though she initially exhibits disdain (for his lechery?), she has a change of heart.

Well-constructed story about an orphan...

[dwpollar · 7/10 · 21 October 2001]

1st watched 10/21/2001 - 7 out of 10(Dir-Marshall Neilan): Well-constructed story about an orphan and her pursuit for happiness and her changing relationship with a character that she calls ‘daddy-long-legs' that helps her throughout her life anonymously and final reveals himself at the end of the movie.(I'll keep this secret so that you can find out who it is for yourself when you watch the movie.) Tauted as one of Mary Pickford's best movies and considering this is the first I've seen of her's I will agree. The movie is great not entirely because of her but because of the story. She does a good job of molding into this character step by step but without the interesting storyline she would not have opportunity to show her talents. Agnes C. Johnson wrote the script and it is based on a novel by Jean Webster. It is no surprise that this work is used to create another four movies including the Shirley Temple movie 'Curly Top' and and a fifties musical. Starts out similar to the ‘Annie' story but really spans the character much further in her life and shows the ups and downs of being an orphan in a much greater way than that film. Another good silent-movie viewing experience for those who are patient enough to read and pay attention a little more closely while watching a film. This one is worth the effort.

Classic Mary Pickford Heart Warmer

[Ron Oliver · 10/10 · 12 September 2000]

An irrepressible orphan girl, living in the appalling conditions of a large asylum, is rescued by a mysterious benefactor and sent to college. Affectionately referring to him as DADDY-LONG-LEGS, she strives to make him proud of her. But when unexpected love comes her way, will she follow her heart or the wishes of her patron?

Mary Pickford was the greatest movie star of the 20th Century. No one else even came close to inspiring the love & devotion of the millions of fans who flocked to see her silent films. In our jaded age it is difficult to understand why a diminutive little lady could engender such ardor right around the world. For answers, one need look no further than DADDY-LONG-LEGS.

Expertly blending joy & pathos, Mary makes us instantly feel the emotions her character is living through. Whether it's stealing a doll for a dying child, dunking a bully in a well, listening to her dead mother being insulted in the worst way, or feeling the pangs & delights of a first love, Pickford tugs at our heart strings, our tear ducts, our funny bones. To watch this film is to get a glimpse as to why America's Sweetheart stands absolutely unique in her legendary status.

Although this is Mary's show all the way, in the supporting cast Milla Davenport should be noted for her vivid portrayal of the vile asylum warden. The film's director, Marshall A. Neilan, appears as a hapless young Lothario.

It was the success of this film at the box office which inspired Pickford to form a studio & become her own distributor. So it was that United Artists was born, with partners Douglas Fairbanks, Charlie Chaplin & D. W. Griffith.

The film has been beautifully restored, with a fine musical score. Notice the original `art titles,' the evocative paintings which enrich the captions.

Rising to the occasion

[LarryR · 7/10 · 27 August 2000]

An oft-told tale's original version, engaging because Mary Pickford's energy and ability draws you in. Her liveliness gives life to this melodrama. The titles act as transitions and some filler with dialogue but don't interfere. Viewers know what's going on during lip movement and the few dialogue titles make sense without insulting pointlessness. Marred only by an inane Cupid scene, Pickford's performance rises above the maudlin April-October romance, as her character elevates herself above her situation and station, by sheer positive effort and force of personality.

She was a Sweatheart, all right!

[mlevans · 9/10 · 3 September 2005]

I caught about 1/3 (in the middle) of Daddy Long-Legs on AMC and remarked to myself what a good actress the girl playing Judy was. It was only after my curiosity was piqued that I found out the title and that this was none other than the renowned Mary Pickford. It was my first date with America's Sweetheart.

Since then I have bought three films over the Internet, Croquette, Daddy Long-Legs and Stella Maris. I have yet to see the third of these. I just watched Daddy Long-Legs in its entirety (tinted VHS version) and was most impressed. I also ordered and read a biography of Ms. Pickford during the interim.

Have no doubt: this lady could act. While she showed in Croquette that she would probably have adjusted well to sound and mature roles, had her public been willing to accept this, we see her in her true element in Daddy Long-Legs.

Hollywood silents were entering their maturity in 1919 and this was a solid one. I'm not sure if the tinting was original (as in the case of Nosferatu, which Kino lovingly restored) or added. If it IS original, it is marvelous. I wonder how close the orchestra score is to the tunes audiences would have heard performed during the film at theatres.

The cast is solid and Pickford is brilliant. I have to defend a couple of criticisms of the screenplay. I don't feel Miss Pritchett is inconsistent in trying to help Judy catch the train. After all, SHE would look bad if her charge missed the train after the rich new director had gone to the trouble of making these arrangements. Plus, her relationship to Judy changes somewhat at that point. While Judy had always been a thorn in her side, she suddenly becomes someone who can make HER look good if she succeeds in college – sort of like a pro athlete making his/her high school coach look good. Obviously, had Judy been kicked out of college, she would have had nothing more to do with her and would have felt justified in her earlier harsh treatment of her.

The question about her increase in scholarship is a legitimate one. It troubles me a tad. Yet it appears that at least a couple – and probably four – of years go by between her arrival at and graduation from college. Since she has no boyfriend to start with, no parents to miss, etc., it stands to reason that she would likely have poured herself into diligent study, as she had to her work at the orphanage. She may well have been exceptionally bright, but merely lacking much "book learning." Is this a stretch? Maybe. Maybe not. I would say getting a novel published on the second try at that age is a bigger stretch … but, still, with a story like the one she would have had to tell, it seems feasible, too.

I wish we had a version restored to the 16 apertures per second, or whatever the silent film era speed was. Nosferatu is glorious with remastered and restored sound and speed. This version is still a tad faster than normal … but it still flows very well.

It is easy to see why Mary Pickford was America's Sweetheart. Watch Daddy Long-Legs and fall in love with her, yourself!

Same as Before

[Cineanalyst · 6/10 · 7 August 2005]

At one point in "Daddy-Long-Legs", Judy Abbott writes the story of her life at the orphanage, which we had previously seen. Mary Pickford's increased control over her vehicles in return increased the power of screenwriters. Frances Marion had helped launch Pickford to stardom by adapting "The Poor Little Rich Girl" and other works--establishing Pickford's typical role as a child--but Marion is absent on this one. Yet, although "Daddy-Long-Legs" is authored by others, it doesn't stray from Marion's formula during the first part: a sympathetic predicament for the child, offset by comedic set pieces. It entertains while holding the audience's emotions. This film is full of intertitles, as well. Ferdinand Earle's "art titles" occur more often during the introductory scenes than do moving pictures (it seems fades do, too). The entire story is largely told this way, and it indicates the important role of the screenwriter.

There's no surprise here. If you're familiar with Pickford's films, you know what you're going to get, and "Daddy-Long-Legs" gives you just that. There is the college years afterward, but that's in the same spirit. The transformation from adolescent to college student is convincing enough. The entire movie is episodic. The pacing is appropriately brisk. And, the girl with the golden curls does her usual thing.

Hollywood movies were looking great by this time, and "Daddy-Long-Legs" reflects that. There are plenty of iris shots, including a masking wipe that acts as a curtain after a performance of "Romeo and Juliet". The film is amply lit and tinted. There are silhouettes and dark photography aided by blue tinting--so we may still see Mary. And, the camera gets close. The film shows the common look and technique of 1919 Hollywood pictures. On the other hand, not much has changed since Maurice Tourneur directed Pickford in "The Poor Little Rich Girl" two years afore. They still use large sets to make her appear even shorter while portraying an adolescent. There was much gloss to it, as well. Most of all, it's still passable, light entertainment.

(Edit Note: There's a joke in the film that alludes to the Influenza pandemic of the day where Pickford sneezes to disperse a crowd--some of whom are wearing masks.)

Mary shines through the morass

[claudecat · 4/10 · 8 October 2004]

Mary Pickford gives her usual delightful performance in "Daddy Long Legs", but the screenplay for this movie drove me crazy. The storyline jumps around and is misleading. For example, Mary's character Judy is at first shown to be a tomboy who speaks the sort of Huck Finn dialect that silent-film intertitle writers found so amusing, but suddenly we're told that she's a brilliant scholar. The impression I had up to then was that the orphanage kids weren't exactly being given a stellar education. The supporting characterizations are also inconsistent. The orphanage mistress is mostly murderously abusive, but then is shown desperately trying to help Judy catch a train to a new school. Why does she suddenly care? Judy's young suitor is portrayed alternately as an oafish fool and a charming lad, 'til we don't know what we're supposed to think of him. I'm not saying movie characters should be one-note--the heartless rich girl in the story is so unbelievably mean that she's dull--but the extreme switches indicate that the screenplay wasn't well-thought-out. There are loads of loose ends: what was the deal with the broken tail-light? What happened to the $1000 check? Why was Mary too ashamed to tell a certain story about herself, but not too ashamed to write a book about it? AND DID THAT GIRL EVER GET OUT OF THE WELL?

I also was kind of creeped out by the Jarvis Pendleton character--he was too controlling.

There are good things in the film besides Mary: the photography and tinting are beautiful (though the untinted whites of Mary's eyes are a little distracting), I liked the score, and the subject of the orphanage was an important one in its day. (I just today heard a radio documentary that discussed orphanages of that period, and they were much worse than the one in the film, which I had wrongly assumed was exaggerated.) To the film's credit, Judy works hard to become independent, but that aspect of the story isn't fully explored.

All in all, worth it for serious Mary fans, but for everyone else, I'd recommend "My Best Girl" over this one any day.

A great first silent film to watch...

[pamelaowen · 10/10 · 22 May 2005]

One evening my daughter and I were at home - I was cleaning in another room, but after a time, I realized the program my daughter was watching had no words. So I went into the living room and promptly was entranced. It was our first silent film (thanks A&E for showing it) - we were hooked. I didn't find myself treating it like a film with subtitles...reading and missing the scenes - instead it was appropriately sub'd prior to a scene, then the silent film told the story all on it's own. It was a great plot of an orphan (back then, that was a social climbing status killer) who broke the ranks and found herself. She had a bit of fun along the way (the scene in the garden when she was young was hilarious!) and eased past the social-highlife land mines. A great family movie for sure.

Enjoyable take on Webster's novel

[Philipp_Flersheim · 7/10 · 8 February 2022]

I was very pleasantly surprised by Marshall Neilan's take on Jean Webster's Daddy-Long-Legs. That is probably because I had previously only seen the musical version from 1955 with the cadaverous Fred Astaire as the male lead and Leslie Caron in the role of Judy Abbott, and the 1919 film is incomparably better. The plot has been changed quite a lot from the novel, if I do not misremember this (it is years since I read it). About half of the film is about Judy's life in the truly terrible orphanage, where she is the leader of the children and playing pranks. Some of these, and some of the title cards, too, are really funny. Then Judy's anonymous benefactor pays for her to go to college, and pretty soon she meets a charming man with whom she falls in love. The film has much less about college life than the book. I found Mary Pickford convincing throughout: as a child in the orphanage (I guess she is supposed to be about 15) as well as a student who feels insecure about her social position (unfortunately the copy I watched was so poor that it was sometimes hard to make out her facial expressions). Mahlon Hamilton as Jarvis Pendleton is also very good, and director Marshall Neilan plays a student in love with Judy. The ending of the film - moving from the nasty party at the Pendletons to Daddy-Long-Legs' home - is very nice and satisfying. To conclude, I spent an enjoyable one-and-a-half hours with this film.

Falls Apart (SPOILERS)

[ColeSear · 5/10 · 6 January 2003]

What I really want to know after watching this film is what happened? Please excuse me for sounding like I'm using latent feminist criticism here, which I'm not but I really dislike the change in Judy's (Mary Pickford's) character after about the first 50 minutes of this film. Yes, there is the great silent humor by both Pickford and the boy when they get drunk which rivals the genius of Chaplin. There is also The Prune Strike and Judy's defense of the baby and Bosco against the harshness of the Trustees/ Aristocrats. She seems like a Dickensian Joan of Arc who will one day save all the children from the harshness of the orphanage.

Now I'm not against Ironic twists of fate because she is set up by the headmaster who wants to be rid of her. So a trustee is coerced to pay for her education and Judy then falls in love with him not knowing this man is also the trustee, when a surprise is obvious to me (I am easily mesmerized and don't usually guess how films end) someone has done something wrong. Not only that but when she finds out Daddy-Long-Legs is the man she wants to marry she curses him and marries him anyway? While Pickford's performance is excellent throughout I cannot understand why she is so pleased at conforming. With all the liberal-minded titles which are sometimes poetic and sometimes just too much suddenly we are give a tale where a woman who hated the rich is now constantly surrounded by aristocracy at school, marries a man she used to fear, and she lives happily ever after? She could've shutdown the orphanage, reformed it or adopted a kid but we get none of that. And it left me scratching my head.

Not only that as soon as she gets to college there is a non-diegetic inclusion of these baby cupids that make absolutely no sense and make this film seem like it was two stories spliced together when they would've been better as two separate shorts instead of as one feature. On the plus side it was enjoyable watching a beautifully restored, shot and finally a tinted silent film. Mary Pickford is a film legend who was so natural as a visual performer that words to her would just be clutter. It's just a shame to be exposed to her in a film where her character's motivation is ill-defined.

A Delight

[drednm · 12 July 2005]

Another terrific Mary Pickford performance and film. Daddy-Long-Legs is a familiar story, but the Pickford version accentuates the comedy and leaves the sappy romance to the horrid 50s version with Astaire and Caron. Sweet and innocent, this film has several memorable comic moments, including Mary getting drunk with a fellow orphan (Wesley Barry?) and leaving the jug for a dog. Very funny. A little tipsy, Mary also slides down banisters and accidentally knocks "Stink Weed" down a well. Oops! This film is a little unusual for a Pickford picture since it allows Mary to grow up. She gets to go to college and be wooed by her roommate's uncle (Mahlon Hamilton). She's also pursued by Jimmie (Marshall Neilan, who also directed the film). Milla Davenport is the orphanage director and Fay Lemport is the nasty Angelina.

Nice comedic touches throughout to keep it all light and entertaining. The version I saw was clean, had beautiful title cards, and good (new) score my Maria Newman. All very impressive for a 1919 film. This film seems miles away from Pickford's 1917 Pride of the Clan, but she had been in over 200 films by the time she made this! Pickford was one of the greats, a true giant in Hollywood, and it's too bad she's so forgotten now. I've never seen a Pickford film I didn't like.

Marvelous Mary Pickford

[Dr. Ed · 10/10 · 18 September 2000]

stars in the first film version of Daddy Long Legs and is dazzling. A peerless comedianne of the silent screen, Pickford plays the spunky orphan as Chaplin would have---lots of physical comedy, sight gags, and pathos. In the 2nd half of the film, Pickford "grows up" and displays here usual warmth. Surely as Pickford films become more available, she will reclaim her place in the Hollywood pantheon. She ranks with Lillian Gish and Gloria Swanson as the best actresses of the silent era, but Pickford remains untouched (even by Mabel Normand and Marie Dressler) as a comedienne!

Mary Pickford in what she did best!

[newportironman · 9/10 · 27 August 2000]

This film has all the elements of the quintessential Mary Pickford film. The little girl. Spunky. Full of love and against the odds. Willing to risk. From the "ash cans" and down to earth but capable of walking with high society with her head held high. Her profile shots by Charles Rosher are the ones we've learned to remember "Little Mary" by. The cupid scenes are incredible not so much for their content but their originality and sentiment in a film made in 1919.

Touches your heart, frustrates your brain

[thinbeach · 5/10 · 30 December 2015]

'Daddy Long Legs' is two tales woven together - half orphanage, half love story. A pretty orphaned girl (Mary Pickford) suddenly has a college education paid for by an unknown. Here she falls in love with an older man, who must appeal to the parent-less girl as both a potential husband and father figure.

After beginning with an almighty ten minute slog with more title-cards than images, the orphanage scenes really shine, as a poor Mary, along with the other kids, get up to all sorts of mischief, and turn the establishment which is compared to a prison into a joyful childhood ride. This half of the film manages to make you sad, make you smile, make you detest, make you love and consider things from multiple points of view.

When Mary leaves the orphanage to college it is initially a breath of fresh air. An unexpected departure from the harrowing set up with superb outdoor photography, but the love story progression and twist at the end are entirely predictable, and tension is slowly lost. The second male character introduced to compete for the heart of Mary is done so purely to try and provide some extra drama, for it is a plot point that runs exactly nowhere. This is true of most characters in the film, who don't receive any character development - used just to evoke certain sympathies.

Movie Odyssey Review #030: Daddy Long-Legs

[Cyke · 8/10 · 17 July 2006]

030: Daddy Long-Legs (1919); released 5/11/1919, viewed 1/19/2006.

Moscow becomes the new capital of Soviet Russia. The Red Sox defeat the Cubs in the World Series. The Great War ends when Germany signs an armistice agreement with the Allies. New nations and republics are popping up all over Europe.

BIRTHS: Spike Milligan, William Holden, Jack Paar, Mike Wallace, Ingmar Bergman, Nelson Mandela, Art Carney. DEATHS: The Royal Family of Russia.

KEVIN: Of all the Mary Pickford movies we've viewed, I enjoyed Daddy Long Legs the most. The first half was better than the second half, however. Things were more interesting and energized when Judy was at the orphanage, (but I guess they couldn't drag that out for the whole movie) then things calmed down a lot when Judy gets sent to college. The almost slapstick feel of the orphanage scenes reminded me of Chaplin, and it was cool to see a woman at the center of the craziness. I wasn't too sure about the ending though, where Pendleton, the man who was pining after her, turns out to have been her benefactor all along. Overall, I'm very glad I watched this movie. It gave me a much better idea of what Mary Pickford was all about.

DOUG: Our second Mary Pickford film in this set, and what would have been our third film overall is Daddy Long Legs. I enjoyed this movie more than Stella Maris. I was a little confused at the beginning about exactly how old Judy is supposed to be. I know that tiny Mary Pickford was playing little girls well into her thirties, and wasn't really sure if she was as old as the other kids or not. Apparently not, since she is quickly shipped over to college halfway into the film. I fell asleep through part of it and had to go back and watch it again, and I had some trouble remembering which of the two male leads (Jarvis and Jerry) was which. I never guessed that Jarvis was Daddy Long Legs all along, so that made an excellent ending to the movie.

Last film: Stella Maris (1918). Next film viewed: Mark of Zorro (1920). Next film chronologically: Broken Blossoms (1919).

The Movie Odyssey is an exhaustive, chronological project where we watch as many milestone films as possible, starting with D.W. Griffith's Intolerance in 1916 and working our way through, year by year, one film at a time. We also write a short review for each and every film. In this project, we hope to gain a deeper understanding of the time period, the films of the era, and each film in context, while at the same time just watching a lot of great movies, most of which we never would have watched otherwise.

Mary Sparkles!

[Ash-65 · 12 August 2000]

This sweet and funny silent stars Mary Pickford as an orphan who, after much kindhearted mischief, goes to college and finds true love, thanks to her anonymous personal trustee, whom she dubs "Daddy-Long-Legs" after the seeing his legs in a shadow. It's a familiar story, since it was remade in 1931 (with Janet Gaynor), 1938 (as the Netherlands film Vadertje Langbeen), and 1955, with Leslie Caron and Fred Astaire.

There are quite a few memorable images in this lovely version: the drunk dog, the one-armed doll, and the scene with the baby cupids.

The recent score by Maria Newman complements the movie, unlike the wretched one she wrote for another Pickford film, The Love Light (1921).

Not Leslie and Fred, but still cute

[overseer-3 · 5 July 2003]

I've always been a big fan of the musical Fred Astaire and Leslie Caron version of Daddy Long Legs, but Mary Pickford's silent version is quite pleasant as well. It drags in a few spots, and I didn't find the actor who played Jarvis very handsome, but Mary was her usual winsome self and enjoyable to watch. Except for the drunk scene near the beginning (I've never found alcohol's effects amusing) the scenes at the orphanage were quite moving, especially when a child dies in Jerusha's (Mary's) arms.

Unlike the comments of a previous reviewer I found that Jerusha's motivations were always crystal clear: they are the motivations of any orphan: to find love and happiness. I found the ending kind of sexy too, and perfectly understandable; of course it was not as adorable and sophisticated as the ending with Fred and Leslie, but why quibble?

Unlike the comments of other reviewers as well, I didn't care for the tinting on the film in this DVD. It annoys me when the tinting keeps changing in a silent film. Just leave it sepia tones throughout or straight black and white. The updated musical score was ok, but not brilliant. All in all I give this silent a 7 out of 10.